There is an ever-closer relationship between the allocation of medical equipment, cost-cutting objectives and a policy of upholding quality health care. However, health services are very difficult to evaluate comprehensively and no serious observer would apply the very general indicators of national health available to such an end. General indicators have taken on a symbolic value that has a magnetic effect on health care professionals and the general public alike. This is especially true of statistics on hi-tech medical equipment. The 1970 Hospital Act extends allocation procedures to such so-called 'heavy-duty' equipment. However, procedural inadequacies later arose while the information and evaluation tools at hand proved too modest for policymaking. Medical image equipment is an excellent tools at hand proved too modest has witnessed an impressive number of major and costly innovations over a short period: an examination of this period will yield a general statement about how allocation ought to be planned. Thus, this analysis and resulting recommendations remain somewhat general, at least insofar as they concern multipurpose diagnostic equipment, for which it seems impossible to define 'needs' objectively. Therapeutic equipment 'need' is obviously easier to define; sector-by-sector policy can be set using relatively accurate epidemiological data. Any future attempt to improve allocation procedures would require the prior creation of a data bank on installed equipment and dispensed medical care. The article shows how the is a convenient administrative unit for coping with equipment allocation and encouraging more concerted action between health care professional and government bodies